Open Residency

We turned this conversation into a playbook — https://openresidency.com/taylor-holiday-playbook?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=taylor_holiday_playbook
Get in touch for LLM SEO Consulting — https://form.typeform.com/to/cwwIwyNa
In this episode of Open Residency, we sit down with Taylor Holiday, CEO of Common Thread Collective, to unpack what's actually happening inside modern e-commerce. Taylor explains why most founders are misdiagnosing their growth problems, how contribution margin and cash flow matter more than top-line revenue, and why the old DTC playbook is quietly breaking. This conversation reframes paid media, creative strategy, and capital allocation through the lens of real operators.
We also dive into the narratives that are misleading founders, the difference between being a marketer and being an allocator of capital, and how to build a business that can survive rising CACs and shrinking attention. Taylor doesn't offer hacks, he offers a mental model shift. If you're scaling a brand, spending on ads, or trying to build something durable in 2026, this episode will challenge how you think about growth.
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00:00 Trailer
00:00:52 What Is This "Prophit" System That Allowed You To Scale Hundreds Of Millions Of Dollars Profitably?
00:10:32 What Does The Reality Look Like When You're Building Out These Forecast Models?
00:26:58 What Is The Hierarchy of Metrics? What Should People Actually Be Looking At?
00:45:16 You've Seen Thousands of Brands, What Are You Seeing Q1 2026?
00:56:43 Meta, Google, TikTok, Amazon...What Other Platforms Are Working?
01:00:58 What Is This Four Quarter Accounting Fit Planning Process?
01:12:58 How Do You Use This Four Quarter Account to Optimize?
01:28:48 The Flow Era: Why Is Constraint The Most Important Trade For Brands?
01:31:26 You Had To Fire 100 People In 2022. How Did Constraint Help?
01:33:52 What Is The Most Constraint Mistake Founders Are Making?
01:35:27 Growth Through Paid Media or Creative Iteration. What's Your Rebuttal To That?
01:41:15 What Is Your Product MVP Framework?
01:45:59 Champions, Growth Drivers, Underperformers, Hidden Gems. How Do You Look At Each?
01:53:06 Biggest Mistake Brands Make When Expanding Their Product Line?
01:57:32 The Worst Creative Strategy Idea Ever. Iteration
02:01:18 What Do You Think Is The Most Invisible Cash Flow Killer?
02:06:37 Quickstrike Questions
🎯 POWERED BY
beehiiv - Use code MARK30 for 30% off Link: https://beehiiv.link/wf441g
Universal Ads - Want to scale your brand with CTV ads? Claim your credit: https://form.typeform.com/to/ckvJ86zT
Top ad teams use this tool to quietly spy on competitors' best ads: https://foreplay.co/?via=openresidency
📬 GET IN TOUCH WITH OPEN RESIDENCY
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/openresidency/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markbrazil/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markmastrandrea/
Website: https://openresidency.com/
Email: [email protected]

We turned this conversation into a playbook — every retail formula, hiring question, and brand strategy in one PDF. Download free: https://openresidency.com/ross-mackay-playbook?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=ross_mackay_playbook
📬 The playbook behind every episode, straight to your inbox: https://openresidency.com/signup
⚡️ BTS & more https://openresidency.com/ross-mackay
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00:00 Trailer
00:00:51 How Do You Make a $2 Product Luxury?
00:04:01 Why Did You Rebrand 3 Times in 1 Year?
00:12:48 How Do You Actually Approach Retailers?
00:18:36 Going Into Retail
00:23:41 The Mafia That Controls Distribution
00:27:32 Biggest Learning From Scaling Retail
00:34:05 How Many SKUs Have You Launched?
00:39:54 The One Rule To Approaching Manufacturers
00:42:32 Being Sold Out For 200+ Days
00:45:30 The Biggest Mistake A Brand Can Make
00:49:38 How To Make Your Own Custom Product
00:51:31 Testing Optimal Ratios As A Runner
00:55:22 Content In Your Positioning Strategy
01:01:21 Collabs With Bandit and RAW
01:05:24 Why World Class Athletes Might Damage Your Brand
01:08:21 Ad Strategy For Cadence
01:11:18 Hiring Philosophy At Cadence
01:22:32 QuickFire Questions
In this episode, we sit down with Ross Mackay, founder and CEO of Cadence — the brand redefining what "premium" means in a $200B beverage category. Ross breaks down how you turn a $2 drink into luxury through positioning, packaging, retail strategy, and relentless attention to detail. From obsessing over shelf velocity to rebranding three times in under a year, this is a masterclass in how modern CPG brands actually win.
🔗 LINKS MENTIONED
Cadence (10% off with code "OR"): https://us.usecadence.com/openresidency
🎙 GUEST
Ross Mackay, Founder & CEO of Cadence
Website: https://us.usecadence.com
📬 GET IN TOUCH
Instagram: https://instagram.com/openresidency
Website: https://openresidency.com/
🎯 Powered by beehiiv
30% off with code MARK30: https://beehiiv.link/cjp31
🎯 Powered by Universal Ads
👉 Claim your credit: https://form.typeform.com/to/ckvJ86zT

📬 The playbook behind every episode, straight to your inbox: https://openresidency.com/signup
⚡️ BTS & more https://openresidency.com/jeff-byers
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00:00 Trailer
00:00:49 Why Did You Kill A $6 Million Product Overnight?
00:05:07 The Biggest Lie In The Supplement Industry
00:06:36 Why Is Sourcing So Important?
00:07:51 What Do 3rd Party Certifications Actually Mean?
00:15:27 Product Development
00:20:45 Biggest Misconceptions About Creatine
00:29:15 How Did You Get Your First Partnership?
00:32:37 How Did The Partnership With Andrew Huberman Start?
00:39:16 Partnering With All 32 NFL Teams
00:40:55 Big Learnings From Your Partners
00:44:26 The Partnership With Arnold
00:51:20 Fundraising and Raising Money
01:01:46 What Did You Learn From Pete Carroll?
01:10:30 What Do You Look For In Hiring?
01:18:03 Quickstrike Questions
In this episode, we sit down with Jeff Byers, CEO of Momentous, to unpack what it really means to build a high-trust brand in a low-trust industry. Jeff shares why he killed a $6M product overnight to protect the company's standards, how Momentous became trusted by all 32 NFL teams, and why most supplement companies cut corners on sourcing, certification, and dosing.

Get 35% off Momentous: https://crrnt.app/MOME/x3v_PO0nShareable (use code MarkMastrandrea)

🎙 GUEST
Jeff Byers, CEO of Momentous
Website: https://www.livemomentous.com
📬 GET IN TOUCH
Instagram: https://instagram.com/openresidency
Website: https://openresidency.com/
🎯 Powered by Universal Ads
👉 Claim your credit: https://form.typeform.com/to/ckvJ86zT

👉 Download the Open Residency x Kallaway Content Playbook: https://open-residency.kit.com/kallaway
⚡️ BTS & more https://openresidency.com/kallaway
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00:00 Trailer
00:01:08 Biggest Lessons As A Full-Time Creator
00:03:19 What Goes Into A Great Hook?
00:13:46 The Most Important Framework For Content
00:15:39 The Hidden Cheat Code For Instagram Thumbnails
00:19:46 The Five Content Games Framework
00:33:34 The Seven Lego Bricks For Short Form
00:50:48 Most Common Editing Mistakes For Short Form
00:53:42 What Metrics Actually Matter For Shorts?
01:01:33 Kallaway's Insane Team Structure
01:10:57 Why Are You So Bullish On YouTube?
01:19:21 Is YouTube More A Packaging Game?
01:22:12 Title/Thumbnail Mistakes
01:28:08 Key Metrics To Evaluate With YouTube
01:34:28 What People Misunderstand About YouTube
01:38:22 The Biggest Myth About Virality
01:48:51 Content Mix Perspective
01:55:14 Building A Community From Your Audience
02:02:13 The Biggest Growth Hack for 2026
02:07:04 AI Tools
02:16:51 Stories That Convert
02:20:46 Quickfire Questions
In this episode, we sit down with Kallaway, the operator quietly building some of the most efficient content machines on the internet. Kallaway breaks down how modern businesses should think about content as infrastructure, not art. We go deep on the content mechanics most never see, how to engineer "desire loops" that earn clicks, and why YouTube should be treated like a professional sport.
🔗 KALLAWAY RESOURCES
YouTube Academy: https://kallaway.co/youtubeacademy/r/openresidency
Sandcastles: https://sandcastles.ai/?ref=openresidency
🎙 GUEST
Kallaway
Website: https://kallaway.co
📬 GET IN TOUCH
Instagram: https://instagram.com/openresidency
Website: https://openresidency.com/
🎯 Powered by Universal Ads
👉 Claim your credit: https://form.typeform.com/to/ckvJ86zT

👉 Join our private community for operators, marketers, and creators (waitlist) - https://www.newsletter-signup.com/or/
⚡️ BTS & more https://openresidency.com/samir-chaudry
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00:00 Trailer
00:01:16 The 3 Rules of YouTube
00:12:27 How to Properly Think About Your Audience
00:24:14 How To Get Good At Title and Thumbnail
00:37:00 How To Research A Vertical
00:42:57 How To Avoid Burnout
00:47:11 The Hidden Problems With Podcasts Today
00:55:21 Respecting the Viewer's Time
01:01:04 How Do You Look at Retention?
01:05:11 Most Important Metrics for YouTube
01:16:16 The Business of Colin and Samir
01:18:20 Working With Sponsors and Big Brands
01:34:28 Small Deals vs. Big Deals
01:37:36 The Education Business
01:45:20 Learnings From Press Publish NYC
01:50:09 What Are You Excited About?
01:54:49 The Palisades Fire
02:13:42 The Future of the Media Landscape
02:28:15 Working With Colin For Over 10 Years
02:29:42 Quickstrike Questions
In this episode, we sit down with Samir Chaudry, co-host of Colin and Samir, for a deep conversation about relevance, creative longevity, and what it actually takes to build a career in the modern media landscape. Samir breaks down how creators stay relevant as platforms, formats, and audience expectations constantly shift — and what metrics actually matter in building a lasting media business.
🎙 GUEST
Samir Chaudry
Website: https://colinandsamir.com
📬 GET IN TOUCH
Instagram: https://instagram.com/openresidency
Website: https://openresidency.com/
🎯 Powered by Manychat
🔗 Learn more: https://manychat.com/
🎯 Powered by Poppy
Get $25 off: https://getpoppy.ai/OpenResidency (use code "OR")